This programme of fellowship schemes and short placement awards supports individuals based within local authority settings to develop as health and/or social care researchers whilst retaining their existing employment and salary. This new initiative provides exciting opportunities for a wide range of individuals.
In order to address the complex health and social care challenges of the 21st century, it is crucial to develop and support future research leaders from a wide range of settings and disciplines. The Local Authority Academic Fellowship (LAAF) Programme and similarly focussed short placement awards are designed to strengthen the capacity for local authority settings to generate and support health and social care research by offering research training awards to the individuals that work within them.
The training opportunities include three schemes:
Additional schemes, including complementary post-doctoral funding opportunities, may be added to the LAAF Programme in the future.
By offering this range of funding opportunities to individuals embedded within local authority settings, these schemes contribute to the development of a credible ‘practitioner academic’ career pathway within local authorities and local authority supporting services.
Each class of award provides protected time within an individual's current employment to undertake fully funded research training, professional development and, depending on the scheme, a research project and academic qualifications.
| Stage | PLAF | DLAF | LA SPARC |
|---|---|---|---|
| Competition Launch | January | September | Autumn |
| Application Deadline | March | November | Winter |
| Award Start Date | September - March | September - March | April - February |
| Duration (when taken full-time) | 1 year or 6 months | 3 years | Short placements |
These fully funded pre-doctoral fellowships enable awardees to retain their existing employment contracts and salaries, whilst protecting their time to prepare an application for a PhD fellowship and undertake a fully funded programme of relevant Masters level training.
These fully funded doctoral fellowships enable awardees to retain their existing employment contracts and salaries, whilst protecting their time to undertake a PhD by research, undertake academic training and develop professional skill sets.
The scheme provides funds for short ‘placement opportunities’ in a part of the NIHR (e.g a Biomedical Research Centre, Applied Research Collaboration, NIHR School etc.). It supports individuals working in local authority settings and NIHR Academy members allowing movement between NIHR/academia and local authority settings in either direction. These will be bespoke, personalised training and career development placements for individuals to develop their skills, knowledge and expertise, train in a specific technique and build meaningful relationships with other researchers.
These placements will draw on the skills of both the academic and NIHR, and the local authority setting to co-produce research that delivers real benefits to people and communities. This may appeal to those who are interested in enhancing their careers, in experiencing research from a different perspective or perhaps looking to take the next step in developing a practice academic career.
Individuals can apply to LA SPARC for up to £15,000 to undertake a bespoke short placement. Applications are short/light-touch and will be assessed in open competition.
The LAAF programme awards are available to individuals of any profession or background, with the exception of doctors and dentists who can already access equivalent dedicated funding opportunities. Applicants must, however, be employed by:
These schemes represent exciting new opportunities for a wide range of individuals, but especially for those without professional social worker or clinician status. Eligible clinicians and social workers are welcome to apply for support from this programme or from the other existing NIHR Academy administered programmes that cater for their own professional groups, but cannot apply to both concurrently.
To be eligible to apply for the LA SPARC, individuals should hold a minimum level of qualification at degree level (BSc/BA) or equivalent and hold a contract of employment in England with either a:
The placement must be focused around early translational (experimental medicine), clinical and applied research that pertains to health, public health and/or social care.
Prospective applicants are strongly advised to read the scheme specific applicant guidance notes in full before beginning an application:
The LAAF programme and LA SPARC can only support research, or the development of research, that meets the NIHR Academy remit for personal awards.
Call: 0113 532 8444
Email: Academy-awards@nihr.ac.uk for the local authority fellowships programme or icbs@nihr.ac.uk for the LA SPARC.
The Doctoral Local Authority Fellowship (DLAF) scheme funds individuals based within local authorities and supporting services to undertake a PhD by research whilst concurrently developing professional skill sets within their existing setting.
This scheme is designed to support individuals working in local authority settings and NIHR Academy members to design and apply for funds to undertake short placements allowing them to move between NIHR and Local Authority settings in either direction.
Find out where you can undertake a NIHR LA SPARC placement.
Guidance notes for the second round of the NIHR Local Authority Short Placement Award for Research Collaboration (LA SPARC) Scheme, which supports short placements for individuals to move between practice and NIHR in order to enhance their careers by developing their skills, knowledge and expertise to work at the interface between local authorities and academia.
Guidance notes for the Doctoral Local Authority Fellowship (DLAF) scheme, which supports the academic ambitions of individuals wishing to develop as health and/or social care researchers whilst remaining employed, or at least engaged, within a local authority or local authority supporting service.
